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Harriet Walter to voice Camilla Barnes’ deadly debut for Scribner
Harriet Walter will narrate the audiobook edition of Camilla Barnes’ debut novel The Usual Desire To Kill (Scribner).
The book is set for publication as a lead release for the Simon & Schuster UK imprint across all editions (audio, hardback and e-book) on 10th April 2025 and is already receiving early endorsements from Monica Ali, Meg Wolitzer and Ann Napolitano.
The book follows Miranda, whose parents live in a dilapidated house in rural France that they share with two llamas, eight ducks, five chickens, two cats and a freezer full of food dating back to 1983. Miranda’s father is a retired professor of philosophy who never loses an argument. Her mother likes to bring conversation back to the war, although she was born after it ended. Married for 50 years, they are uncommonly set in their ways. Miranda plays the role of translator when she visits, communicating the desires or complaints of one parent to the other and then venting her frustration to her sister and her daughter.
Scribner said: “A wry, propulsive, exquisitely observed story of a singularly eccentric family and the sibling rivalry, generational divides and long-buried secrets that shape them, The Usual Desire to Kill is an extraordinary debut novel from a seasoned playwright with a flair for dialogue and immense empathy for her characters.”
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Walter said: “The Usual Desire to Kill is at turns extremely funny and very moving and always very cleverly done. Camilla has a real flair for dialogue – her experience writing for the stage is evident throughout – and has created complex and memorable characters. It was a pleasure to perform the audiobook.”
Walter, who recently starred as Caroline, Countess of Brockenhurst in Belgravia (ITV) and Lady Caroline Collingwood in Succession (HBO), has had a multi-award-winning career. She has played 18 Shakespearean roles, mainly with the RSC, of which she is an honorary artist and a governor, and has a Damehood.
Barnes, who was born and brought up in England and now lives in Paris, said: “When writing dialogue, I imagine a specific actor for each role so that I can see and hear the words as they come to me. In my mind, Harriet’s voice was Mum. She was part of the novel right from its conception and so it was miraculous and marvellous to hear that she was to record the audiobook. Along with compassion, she brings biting wit and icy precision. Her voice is mine – but better, of course.”
